Shelter From The Storm
by Faberrittanainthetardis
Summary: Sparia fic. Aria is spiralling out of control after finding out about Ezra being A (note: ACTUALLY A in this fic, rather than just a stalker). Can Spencer save her, possibly from herself?


**From the following prompt: 'Aria spiralling completely out of control after finding out about Ezra. I know you didn't add this to your list but how about Spannaria? Or Sparia or Haria, whichever. I don't want Spencer focused on drugs. Just her completely fretting over Aria, trying to take care of her.' **

**This is either gonna be Sparia or Spannaria. I'm not sure which so if you guys have a preference, let me know. **

**Chapter 1**

"Pick up, pick up, pick up..." Spencer muttered as she listened intently to the dial tone, waiting for the phone to be answered. Or rather, hoping that this wouldn't be a repeat of her earlier attempts. As expected, she was diverted to voicemail. She cursed, hanging up the phone.

"Aria?" Hanna asked sympathetically from her position on the other end of the couch.

Spencer nodded, slipping her phone back into her pocket. "She's not answering my phone calls or my messages."

"She's not answering _anyone's_ calls and messages." Hanna stated curtly. "What makes you think you'd be the exception?"

"I didn't, I just…" Spencer's shoulders slumped in defeat. "I'm really worried about her, Hanna. She won't talk to us, she avoids us at schools. Emily said that Aria walked in the opposite direction when she tried to talk to her yesterday. That's not like her."

"Well she did just break up with her boyfriend." Hanna said, flicking distractedly through her phone. "The same boyfriend who's been stalking us for the past three years. She probably feels kind of guilt about the whole thing."

"She shouldn't." Spencer frowned at the thought of Aria feeling any kind of responsibility for what had happened. "It's not like any of this is her fault."

"Yeah well you know that and I know that but sh…" Hanna trailed off when Spencer stood up from the couch rather quickly, "Hey, where are you going?"

"I'm going over there." Spencer answered, running a frazzled hand through her hair. "If she's not going to answer my calls to tell me she's okay I'm going to have to go over there and find out for myself one way or another."

"That's not going to work, I tried the same thing yesterday. She didn't even answer the door." Hanna huffed, rolling her eyes. "And she moved the spare key. Plus she's probably angry with you because you kind of started this."

"Thanks, Hanna." Spencer shot Hanna an irritated look. As if she really needed to be reminded of the fact that she'd technically been the start of Aria's pain. She kept telling herself that telling Aria the truth was for the best but that didn't keep the guilt she felt at bay. "That's exactly what I wanted to hear."

Hanna shrugged sheepishly. "Sorry, Spence. I just don't think that going over there all guns blazing is a good idea, that's all. She obviously doesn't want to see anyone. I can understand that."

Spencer sighed and took a seat on the arm of the couch. She didn't know what to do for the best but not being able to do anything to help Aria was tearing her apart. "She's in a really dark place right now. Pushing us away isn't going to help her. What if she does something stupid? What if she hurts herself?"

"Okay, don't even put that thought into my head." Hanna said, flinching at the mere suggestion. "I'm worried enough as it is without thinking about that."

Spencer nodded, biting her lip. The thought was already planted in her mind though and now that she'd voiced her concerns she couldn't stop thinking about it. Aria could be doing anything right now. Spencer had seen her in passing at school and she'd looked distraught every time. "I have to go over there."

"Spencer…"

"I know!" Spencer snapped irritably. "I know she doesn't want to see me but I need to see her. I can't just sit by and doing nothing while she…" she trailed off, shaking her head. "I have to do something."

"Fine." Hanna huffed out a sigh. "But I'm coming with you."

"No." Spencer answered instantly, much to Hanna's surprise and annoyance. "Seeing one of us is going to be hard enough. I don't want to overwhelm her. I'll call you later to tell you what happened."

"Fine." Hanna sighed but she couldn't bring herself to argue with Spencer's logic. "But I'll be waiting for that call."

Spencer offered Hanna a tentative smile before she stood up and walked out of the room. The sooner she got to Aria the better. If she could just have a few minutes alone with her she knew that she'd be able to talk her into letting her guard down, into letting Spencer help her through what she was going through.

Aria could hear the insistent thudding on the front door but she refused to acknowledge it. She'd gotten tired of moping in bed so she'd decided to mope downstairs on the couch instead. It wasn't much better. Her glassy eyes were fixed intently on the television, her own reflection in the black screen staring right back at her. She didn't have the energy to turn it on, nor did she really want to.

A few minutes passed before she heard the sound of a key in the door. She finally moved, looking over her shoulder in confusion. She'd hidden the spare key, nobody should have been able to get in. A moment later the front door closed and Spencer appeared in the doorway. Aria relaxed slightly. Of course Spencer would be able to figure out where she would hide it. She should have just brought it back into the house.

Aria turned away to hide the tear tracks on her cheeks. She didn't want her friends to worry about her. She didn't deserve their worry.

"Aria." Spencer tentatively stepped into the room, her eyes glued to the back of Aria's head. "You weren't answering my calls."

"I know." Aria winced at the gruff sound of her voice. It had been a while since she'd spoken. "I don't know where my phone is."

"I was worried." Spencer skirted around the couch and took the seat next to Aria. "I mean I _am_ worried. I'm still worried."

"Well as you can see, I'm fine." Aria's tone was colder than she intended it to be and she noticed Spencer flinch next to her. "You can go now. Leave the key on the way out."

Spencer swallowed heavily. Aria had never spoken to her like that. Even when they were angry at each other, her voice would never take on that tone. "Aria, I'm sorry about everything that's happened. About hurting you. I didn't know what else to do and I couldn't keep something so important from you. You have to understand that. I could never just let what was happening carry on. I was scared for you."

Aria reluctantly turned her eyes towards Spencer and gave a barely there nod of her head. "I'm not angry with you, Spencer. I just…I can't right now. Could you please just leave?"

"You can't what?" Spencer's heart tightened in her chest at the shakiness of Aria's voice. She was obviously on the edge of tears yet again. "What can't you do, Ar? Let me help you."

"I can't look at you right now." Aria said, her eyes inevitably slipping away. Spencer flinched again and Aria silently cursed herself. She was getting too good at accidentally hurting people. "Why are you even here? This is all my fault."

"Aria." Spencer reached out and gripped Aria's hand. "Aria, _look at me_." She waited until Aria's eyes met hers again before she continued slowly. "You are not to blame for any of this, okay? This isn't your fault. It's his. I don't blame you for any of this and neither do Emily and Hanna."

Aria's bottom lip wobbled slightly. "You should. I blame myself."

"Why?" Spencer gave the hand in her own a desperate squeeze. "I don't understand, Ar. You didn't do anything."

Aria swallowed thickly. "I feel like…I feel like I betrayed you guys by being with him."

Spencer shook her head, a soft sigh passing her lips. "You couldn't have known. Nobody saw this coming. I didn't even suspect him and I suspect _everyone_."

Aria smiled unwittingly at Spencer's joke at her own expense.

Spencer couldn't help but smile back, relieved that she'd managed to remove the upset expression from Aria's face, if only for a second. Aria's smile quickly dropped however, Spencer's fading along with it. She continued to grip Aria's hand, not wanting to let go until Aria physically pulled away from her. "I know you're hurting right now but pushing us away isn't the answer. We just want to help you. We all do."

"I don't need your…"

"Aria, stop." Spencer stated sharply. She softened at the surprised look on Aria's face. "I'm sorry. Just…don't lie to me. You do need our help. You need _somebody_ to help you, you can't go on like this."

"I don't know what else to do." Aria said weakly. "I'm tired, Spence. I don't know how to fight this anymore."

Spencer didn't have to ask to know what Aria was referring to. She was talking about the darkness she felt deep down in her gut. "I'll help you. Even if you can't see Hanna and Emily right now, I can help you get through this. I don't want to see you go down the same road I went down when I found out about Toby. I can't watch that happen to you."

Aria nodded, sniffling softly. "I wanted to call you, I just couldn't."

"I know." Spencer let go of Aria's hand in favour of moving closer to draw her into her arms. Aria melted into the embrace immediately, her hand clutching Spencer's shirt. Spencer sighed softly and pressed her lips to the top of Aria's head. "But I'm here now. And I'm not going anywhere."

XXX

"What the hell took so long?!" Hanna snapped as soon as she picked up the phone. "I've been calling you for _hours_, why didn't you pick up? Is Aria okay? Did something happen?"

"Aria is…" Spencer trailed off, glancing into the living room to where Aria was curled up on the couch. "She's physically fine. Emotionally, not so much."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" if anything Hanna only sounded more worried. "I'm coming down there right now. I need to see her."

"Hanna, stop." Spencer said in a quiet but firm voice. "Aria doesn't need that right now. I'm dealing with it, okay?"

"Spencer, you're freaking me out. What's going on?"

"I told you, she's in a dark place." Spencer watched as Aria lifted a hand to lightly rub her puffy eyes. She'd spent the past few hours experiences bouts of crying fits while Spencer tried to comfort her. "She's really upset. She told me that she feels like she's betrayed us somehow and that's w-"

"Betrayed us?" Hanna echoed distastefully. "That's crap, she didn't do anything."

Spencer's lips turned up at the adamant answer. She'd expected Hanna's reaction to be something like that. "That's what I told her. I don't think she really believes me though." She sighed, leaning against the doorframe. "Hanna…"

Hanna was silent for a moment, obviously waiting for Spencer to continue. When it became apparent that she wasn't going to she finally spoke up. "What?"

"Nothing." Spencer blinked against the prickling in the back of her eyes. "It just hurts to see her so broken."

"I need to see her." Hanna's voice was pleading. "Can't you talk her into letting me come over?"

"I'll try." Spencer answered though she wasn't sure she'd be able to manage the request. Aria was determined not to talk to either Hanna or Emily. Spencer was still surprised that Aria had agreed to let her stay with her for the night. She supposed that Aria was in desperate need of company even if she didn't want to admit it to herself. "I have to go, Han. I'll call you tomorrow morning. Not too early, I promise."

"I don't care how early you call me."

Spencer faltered at the instantaneous answer. Hanna was obviously deeply concerned about Aria's wellbeing if she was willing to sacrifice sleep for the sake of an update. "Okay, try not to worry too much. Goodnight."

"Goodnight." Hanna sighed into the phone.

Spencer hesitated for a moment before she hung up and walked back into the living room. Aria looked up as she entered and Spencer flashed an unsure smile. "Hanna says hi."

Aria nodded slowly, almost as if she hadn't heard what Spencer had said.

"She's worried." Spencer said, inching closer. "She wants to see you."

Aria shrugged silently. "She shouldn't see me like this. I'm a mess."

"Which just makes her want to see you more." Spencer finally reclaimed her seat next to Aria. "She just wants to help you, Ar. At least think about letting her come over tomorrow. If only to keep her from worrying too much. Please?"

Aria gave a tiny nod of her head but that was enough for Spencer. She smiled widely, happy that she'd managed to convince Aria to at least think about it. "Have you eaten today?"

Aria shook her head but at the mention of food, she crossed her arms in front of her. "I'm not hungry."

Spencer's brow furrowed in concern. "Aria, when was the last time you ate? Honestly?"

"I don't know." Aria answered quietly, her eyes focusing on something over Spencer's shoulder. "A few days ago. I'm not sure. I haven't really felt like eating anything lately."

"A few days ago?" Spencer echoed in alarm. That wasn't healthy. No wonder Aria looked so weak. "You have to let me make you something. I'll…" she moved to stand up but Aria gripped her wrist.

"I don't want you to make me anything." Aria spoke in a whisper. "I just want to go to bed. I'm tired."

Spencer sighed but gave a reluctant nod of her head. "I'm making you breakfast tomorrow morning."

"Fine." Aria rose from the couch, her hand still on Spencer's wrist. She reluctantly released it and headed for the door only to falter when Spencer didn't immediately follow her. "Spencer?"

"Yeah?" Spencer had been worrying about the new information but she looked up at the sound of her name. Aria was hesitating in the doorway but she wasn't looking in Spencer's direction.

"Aren't you coming with me?" Aria asked in a small voice. "I'm not going to make you sleep on the couch you know."

"Yeah!" Spencer stood up a bit too quickly but she couldn't bring herself to care about her overenthusiasm. It wasn't like Aria would even notice. "Of course I'm coming."

Aria nodded and walked out of the room. Spencer frowned at the lack of response but quickly followed. Instead of finding Aria walking up the stairs like she'd thought she would she found her checking that the door was locked. When Aria was satisfied that the door was locked she slid the chain into place and put the key in the door to make sure that nobody could get in with another key.

Spencer tilted her head in contemplation. Aria was clearly worried about someone getting into the house. Understandably so of course, but her behaviour was admittedly overkill. She watched as Aria checked the door again. And again. And again.

"It's locked." Spencer said quietly, causing Aria to falter in her actions.

"Right." Aria muttered, finally stopping. She turned to face Spencer and gave her a small smile before she walked towards the stairs. Spencer was quick to follow, unwilling to leave Aria alone.

TBC.


End file.
